The SJU published its third annual press freedom report in March, developed in cooperation with the IFJ. The comprehensive report provides an overview of the grim state of media freedom in the country and identifies common threats that hinder journalists’ work, including attacks, detentions, legal prosecution of journalists and harassment targeted particularly at women journalists.
Among the major violations, the report highlights the killing of two media workers in 2023 in Syria: both were strongly condemned by the IFJ. On 9 August, a reporter from the privately owned Sama TV, Firas al-Ahmad, was killed when a roadside bomb exploded in al-Shiah district in the southern province of Daraa. Al-Ahmad was travelling in a vehicle with two security officers of the Syrian armed forces, who were also killed in the bomb explosion when returning from a counter-narcotics operation.
On 23 August, a team of Jin TV journalists were travelling in a media company car near Qamishli, close to the Syrian-Turkish border, when the vehicle was hit by a suspected drone attack by Türkiye. The driver Faisal Haj Sinan, who was an employee of Jin TV, was killed during the attack.
In a country that has been at war for more than a decade, Syrian journalists that work to fulfil their role of informing the public face grave safety risks and are often targeted for their journalistic work. The fragile economic context, and the economic sanctions that have greatly affected the media sector, were only worsened by the devastating earthquake that struck Syria and Turkey in March 2023. This disaster has made living conditions even harder for journalists.
The IFJ also fully backs the SJU’s call for a process to reform the media law in Syria, to ensure that professional journalists are granted more protection. Moreover, the IFJ urges the government to remove all articles of the media law, and other legislation, that criminalise media professionals’ work.
For more detailed information, download the SJU’s press freedom report in Arabic here.
IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said: “We welcome the comprehensive work that the SJU has conducted, monitoring press freedom in the country and shedding light on the challenges that Syrian journalists face when doing their job. It is imperative that the perpetrators of attacks against journalists be brought to justice. The IFJ will continue to support journalists in Syria and the pivotal work our colleagues carry out.”